Rules and Procedures for YUGSA Operating Grant Fund (OGF)
OGF's are disbursed to Departmental Graduate Students’ Associations (DGSA's), provided that the conditions listed below are met. Failure to meet these conditions shall result in the immediate suspension of any further transfers of OGF until such time as compliance with these conditions is confirmed.
1. DGSA's:
a) DGSA meetings are open to all graduate students enrolled in the associate department/program. These meetings shall be held on a regular basis, and they shall have final authority over all matters of the association.
b) Officers who shall have signing authority for the association must be elected according to democratic procedures at such open meetings.
c) OGFs are to be spent on projects which are open to all students, or which provide support for initiatives endorsed at open meetings of the association.
2. Prior to receiving the OGF for each academic year, a DGSA must:
a) Appoint its representatives to the YUGSA Council.
b) Provide, upon request, any information required by YUGSA’s auditors for the annual audit of the organization.
3. If any of the following conditions are not met, then the allocated OGF will be reduced to the Base Level (60% of the total fund):
a) DGSAs must submit the OGF Application Form no later than November 15th each year in order to receive the fund. Updated financial records must be submitted to VP Finance (finance@yugsa.ca) no later than February 15th to receive the second disbursement of OGF.
b) As part of the OGF Application Form, DGSAs must provide an estimation of their budget under the four categories given under the “Budget” heading. DGSA's may decide to focus their budget on one or two categories to the exclusion of others at their own discretion.
c) Each DGSA must, prior to receipt of each instalment, submit copies of bank statements and ledgers showing all income and expenditures since the last OGF instalment.
d) The DGSA representatives to the YUGSA Council (or their proxies/alternatives) must attend a minimum of three out of six regular council meetings held before March 1st. In addition, attending the Council Orientation and Anti-Oppression Training Session in the month of October is mandatory for all DGSA representatives to the YUGSA Council.
e) The YUGSA officer distributing the OGF cheques must ensure that the accounts are in good order and up-to-date, and may only then complete and verify the transaction on the “OGF Record” table.
4. DGSAs will receive an email notification once the payment is made via JotForm. The payment will be distributed from Plooto.
5. DGSAs who spend less than half their total grant over the course of the year and who fail to outline a plan for the use of the surplus will have their funding reduced to base level for the following year.